Archive by Author
Conscription and the Changing Face of the Swedish Armed Forces Posted by Marcus Cederström on May 18, 2010
Sweden, as a nation, has not been involved in armed conflict for nearly 200 years. The country has lived by a policy of neutrality in all major conflicts, including WWI and WWII. The nation does send peace keeping troops abroad, and does participate in UN actions, but on the whole is considered to be a…
Stockholm Syndrome – Music from Mayhem Posted by Marcus Cederström on May 10, 2010
Jennie recently linked to a sketch by Comedy Central. Through some investigative journalism The Daily Show found that Stockholm is “possibly not heaven on earth according to Wyatt Cenat.” The sketch plays on the Stockholm Syndrome term suggesting that the Swedes interviewed are being held hostage by their country, and so are sympathetic to its…
Sweden’s Culinary Treats Posted by Marcus Cederström on May 8, 2010
Husmanskost is the Swedish word for traditional Swedish food. Many of the traditional meals that are included in the husmanskost category include potatoes and fish or some other form of meat. While some dishes or foods are more common than others, some are more famous than others. For better or worse. For example, there’s the…
The News from Stockholm – Freedom of the Press Posted by Marcus Cederström on Apr 25, 2010
In the past week, a discussion has been brewing in Sweden about freedom of the press. The discussion stems from recent revelations that a right-wing newspaper has received government funding. Nationell Idag, a newspaper published by Nationaldemokraterna, has been granted about 1.7 million SEK in support for the 2010 calendar year (along with about 700,000…
How Often Do You Speak Swedish? Posted by Marcus Cederström on Apr 20, 2010
How often do you actually nee to respond to the question how often? Often enough it seems. And the Swedish language offers you a couple of different options when answering. As a general rule, the response is the word “i.” Hur ofta läser du dina mejl? En gång i timmen. How often do you read…
Public Holidays in Sweden Posted by Marcus Cederström on Apr 12, 2010
Public holidays in Sweden are referred to as röda dagar. Red days. In the past Christian holidays were marked in red on the calendar. Today, your average Swedish calendar will have quite a few red days. All of the public holidays, as well as every Sunday. If you see a red day on the calendar…
A (Very) Short History of the Kings of Sweden Posted by Marcus Cederström on Mar 26, 2010
For over 1000 years, Sweden has been considered a monarchy of some sort. This has included periods of foreign rule, periods of dual rule, even periods of female rule at a time when women did not usually ascend to the throne. Today, Sweden retains its status as a monarchy, albeit a constitutional monarchy. Essentially this…